SANTA CRUZ, CA - Students Against War’s April 11th counter-recruitment protest at UC Santa Cruz was a small but concrete step towards ending the illegal and immoral occupation of Iraq. It also demonstrated that violent and discriminatory employers are not welcome on our campus. Last Tuesday’s victory, which saw Army and National Guard recruiters flee in the face of a determined but peaceful protest of 150 students, faculty and staff, means that UCSC has been recruitment-free for more than eighteen months.

The genuine successes of the counter-recruitment movement at UCSC and campuses around the nation help to explain the repression and hysteria that have followed the April 11th protest. Faced with mounting public opposition to the occupation, growing discontent amongst the troops, and an immigrant rights movement that has shaken the domestic status quo, the right-wing elite is terrified that it is losing its grip on the American people.

This desperation has had a number of implications for Students Against War. Due to the continued irresponsible actions of some bloggers, members of the group have received numerous death-threats and anti-Semitic comments through phone calls and emails. One threat urged “patriots” to “come down to your little shithole with some axe handles and bust your fucking heads.”

In the face of these attacks, SAW decries the repression of student activism and reaffirms its commitment to the struggle against the occupation of Iraq and the militarization of education. We stand in solidarity with campus activists at San Francisco State University, and in the immigrants’ rights movement across the nation who have faced similar attacks in recent days and weeks. We call on school and college administrators across the country to end their assault on student activists and guarantee the right of peaceful protest, and we ask Chancellor Denton in particular to speak out against the attacks on SAW and enter into a genuine dialogue with the antiwar movement at UC Santa Cruz. Students won’t be silenced! The occupation of Iraq must end!

Students Against War will be participating in UCSC Faculty Against War’s teach-in “The War on Terror: A Credible Threat” on April 24. See http://www.thewaronterror.org for more info.